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Four candidates are seeking two seats on the Cloverdale Unified School District Board of Trustees. Click on their names to see how they answered the WSC questionnaire on local issues. Candidates are listed in alphabetical order. The symbol (I) marks an incumbent.
What do you think of their positions? What questions would you like to see them answer? Which one is best suited to serve on the school board? Post your questions and comments below.
Not yet responded to WSC questionnaire:
ED BOWEN
Meet the candidates:
JOANNE ARGYRES (I)
Age: Not provided
Occupation: School district trustee and retired teacher
Political party affiliation: Not provided
BRIAN J. HEMPHILL
Age: 40
Occupation: Director of Operations at Clos du Bois Winery
Political party affiliation: Democrat
GENE LILE
Age: 57
Occupation: Retired principal at Cloverdale High School
Political party affiliation: Democrat
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Do you want students in our district to have access to arts classes? Find out which candidates support arts education. Read the Arts Education Alliance of Sonoma County’s survey of Cloverdale candidates: http://artsed411.org/surveys/surveylist.aspx
Based upon the current status of the Cloverdale Unified School District I think that it is critical that the next Board of Directors is balanced by some much needed old fashioned business acumen holding individuals accountable for their performance and actions in all aspect of District Operations. That would include the administration being tasked with accountability in maintaining a balanced budget. This particular District is in very desperate shape fiscally and at some point must be run as a business to continue to be able to offer educational support for the children of our community in the future. How much further can we cut or to extend bond credit to a District that has proven that it is not capable of making rational decisions with the funds it has had to manage in the past. Brian Hemphill’s role as Director of Operations regardless of the business requires just the type of leadership and management background that facilitates asking the hard questions and extracting truthful answers in order to achieve the results required for success. In the realm of educational experience it is critical to have someone involved that understands the “educational system” but that individual must also have a very clear understanding that parts of it have gone off course or are broken and must be corrected. Both Joanne Argyres and Gene Lile have the educational experience to be beneficial in rounding out the roles on the board, and either one can serve in that capacity. I certainly would not rule out either one but I personally will not be looking to vote for filling with the status quo, it is time for change and accountability.
Gee Mary, what does this mean…”running the operations of a large winery known for their super premium wines.”??
Are you insinuating that somehow Mr. Hemphill’s affiliation with wine disqualifies him from being involved in the education of children, or do you have a bone to pick with Clos Du Bois?
Experience with balanced budgets is most certainly one area our schools desperately need, and as a director of operations of a winery the size of Clos, he most certainly has the experience of leadership, management and administration of a large workforce…
Our educational system needs new blood, from outside that industry, and yes, it is an industry. Just ask the union how well it does…Without knocking on the other candidates, those with “extensive experience in education” have run California’s school system into the ground. It SHOULD be run as a business, and teachers should be held accountable for performance, just as the rest of us in the working world are held accountable.
After looking at the profiles of all the candidates, I would have to say that the best candidates for the two positions in the Cloverdale School Board would be Ms. Argyres and Ms. Lile. I cannot comment on Mr. Bowen because there was no questionnaire posted for him at the time.
After reading Mr. Hemphill’s questionnaire I happen to be quite hesitant in even considering him to be on the school board. He may have previous experiences in business and balancing budgets, but he does not have any experience in the administration of education. I would not want the school district that my children are currently attending to be ran like a business. Besides, I would have to question how Mr. Hemphill will be able to give 100% of his effort while running the operations of a large winery known for their super premium wines.
My vote as of right now is for Ms. Argyres and Ms. Lile. With their extensive experience in education, I believe they will contribute exceptionally to the future education of our children. In this time of economic hardship, we need to have the best candidates possible to guide our children in the proper path.